PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office provided new details about the fatal shooting of Sgt. Elio Diaz, who was killed during a traffic stop on Dec. 1. Diaz stopped a white pickup truck at a Chevron gas station in Port Charlotte after discovering its license plate was flagged for financial responsibility suspension, indicating a lapse in insurance, FOX 4 reported.
During the hour-long interaction, Diaz learned the driver was homeless and living out of the truck. Diaz worked with the man to help him reinstate his insurance to avoid impounding the vehicle and its contents, Sheriff Bill Prummell stated during a news conference on Dec. 19.
However, as Diaz returned to the truck after working from his patrol car, the man retrieved a rifle and shot the sergeant multiple times.
“He had no chance,” Prummell said when asked if Diaz had a chance to return fire during the ambush attack.
The man then fled the scene in his truck, leaving Diaz critically wounded. Diaz was rushed to the hospital, where he later died.
Prummell stated Diaz had no opportunity to defend himself, describing the attack as ambush-style. The man then fled the scene in his truck, leaving Diaz critically wounded. Diaz was rushed to the hospital, where he later died.
A multi-agency manhunt ensued, with investigators locating the man’s truck at a Popeye’s parking lot near I-75 about an hour later, according to the report. The suspect had swapped the truck’s Florida license plate for a Georgia plate and donned a ballistic vest armed with steel plates, dash cam and body camera video shows. Deputy Andrea Short and Corporal Nate Edwards confronted the man in the parking lot, where he refused to comply with commands and made an overt movement toward his rifle. Short fired a single shot, fatally striking the man.
Prummell praised Short for her decisive action.
“As you can see, the shooter in this case was prepared and ready for a fight,” Prummell said. “And with a single shot, Andrea stopped what could’ve been a potential blood bath. In my book, she’s a frickin’ hero.”
Diaz was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant.
A search of the man’s truck revealed an arsenal, including three rifles, over 1,000 rounds of ammunition, loaded magazines, gas masks and other tactical gear, according to the report. Investigators also discovered packets of hallucinogenic mushrooms and learned from the man’s family that he had a history of self-medicating and erratic behavior.
“[Family members] knew he had weapons, and they did absolutely nothing. People need to speak up,” Prummell said.
